The Armenians: A People in Exile(David Marshall Lang's Journey from Russia to Armenia via Caucasian Georgia)

Originally published in 1981, this book tells the story of the Armenian dispersion and gives a graphic account of the persecution of the Armenians by the Turks from 1895 to 1922 which foreshadowed the Jewish holocaust at the hands of Hitler, who is said to have modelled some of his own ideas on those of the Young Turks. Drawing upon material from little-known sources, this book follows the trail of the Armenians from their native lands around Mount Ararat to such far-flung spots as lhasa, Harbin and Buenos Aires. This lively and readable book is an excellent account of a people who have been partly in exile for some 2,000 years.

Table of Contents:
1. The Armenian Holocaust 2. False Hopes 3. Abomination of Desolation 4. Land and People: Historical Introduction 5. Between Byzantium and Islam 6. The Crusades and Links with France 7. Towards the Orient: 1 – Palestine, Persia, Central Asia and Beyond 8. Towards the Orient: 2 – Armenians in India and South-East Asia 9. Eastern Europe and the Russian Connection 10. Armenians in the New World 11. Armenian Cooking 12. As Others See Us: The Armenian Image in Literature 13. The Armenians and the Occult 14. Armenians and the Arts World-wide.

About the Author :
David Marshall Lang was appointed Acting British Vice-Consul in Tabriz in 1945. In 1946 he became a fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge and lecturing in Georgian at SOAS London from 1949-52. From 1952-1953 he was senior fellow at the Russian Institute of Columbia University in New York. In 1958 he was appointed Reader in Caucasian Studies at SOAS. Visiting Professor of Caucasian Studies at UCLA from 1964-5, in 1965 he became Professor of Caucasian Studies at London University. He was Honorary Secretary of the Royal Asiatic Society from 1962-64 and held an Honorary Doctorate from Tbilisi University.

Review :
‘Lang has compiled a well-written account of history and myth.’ Los Angeles Times ‘The Armenians, in their time, have been even more persecuted than the Jews, at any rate proportionately. David Marshall Lang provides a history of these fascinating people.’ Auberon Waugh, The Daily Mail ‘A compendium of fascinating information not available elsewhere. The Armenians are remarkable people, and this book helps us to know them better.’ Church Times ‘This is an encouraging book for it is a saga of the indestructibility of the human spirit.’ New Law Journal.